Golden State dished out another low blow but it was Oklahoma City who took the points win, trouncing the defending NBA champions 133-105 to take a 2-1 lead in the Western Conference finals.
Paced by 33 points from Kevin Durant and a near triple-double from Russell Westbrook - who finished with 30 points, 12 assists and eight rebounds - the Thunder were never headed after setting up a 72-47 halftime lead.
The game turned on the back of another flashpoint moment involving Warriors forward Draymond Green and the Thunder's New Zealand centre Steve Adams.
With just under six minutes remaining in the second half, Green was slapped with a flagrant foul after appearing to kick out and make contact with Adams' groin - just as he had done in game two of the series.
While the Warriors were livid with the foul call, the incident sparked the Thunder into action, closing the first half on a 24-7 run to set up a 25-point lead at the main break.
The Green-Adams incident came on the same day Cleveland guard Dahntay Jones was suspended for game four of the Eastern Conference finals against Toronto after striking Raptors big man Bismack Biyombo in the groin in the final seconds of game three.
The Warriors will wait anxiously to learn if Green also cops a ban.
Adams, who crumpled to the floor after the groin blow, had mentioned Green before the game saying: "He's peaked with annoyingness."
After the game he said of the kick: "It happened before, mate. He's pretty accurate."
Green claimed it was accidental, saying: "I'm sure he wants to have kids some day. I'm not trying to end that on the basketball court."
The 133 points were a Thunder playoff record and the most points scored by any team this post-season.
Durant's 33 points came on 10-of-15 shooting from the field to go along with eight rebounds and three blocked shots, while Westbrook was just two rebounds away from his first triple-double of the post-season.
Steph Curry paced the Warriors with 24 points on 7-of-17 shooting, including 3-of-11 success from 3-point range. Klay Thompson scored 18 points.
Green was largely a non-factor for the Warriors, contributing just six points, four rebounds and three assists.
Game four is on Tuesday in Oklahoma City.
